Li Boyang looked at the obese Christian with amusement, his mind quickly flipping through the information on the Tailai Trading Company.
This Tai Lai & Co. is no ordinary firm; it's a behemoth like Jardine Matheson, originating from Germany. It primarily deals in manufacturing, has a very deep-rooted history, and wields considerable influence in Germany. It is a competitor of Jardine Matheson.
However, Britain is currently the world's superpower, and Jardine Matheson, which belongs to Britain, has a stronger influence by leveraging Britain's power. Tai Lai & Co. suffered a lot of losses in the competition between them and Jardine Matheson in the Far East market.
Li Boyang said with amusement, "Tell me your purpose for coming."
As for why the other party knew him, it was not surprising. Li Boyang's cooperation with Jardine Matheson was not a secret in the industry.
For the equally powerful Tai Lai Trading Company, keeping an eye on its competitors' actions was crucial, so it's not surprising that Li Boyang came to their attention.
Seeing that Li Boyang was getting straight to the point, Christian said directly, "Our Tai Lai Trading Company knows the influence of Baozhilin in Guangdong, and Mr. Li is the decisive person in Baozhilin, so we are here to seek cooperation."
Li Boyang said with a playful tone, "You should know our current relationship with Jardine Matheson, right? You think you can take me for a second?"
“We have conducted a detailed investigation of Baozhilin, so Mr. Li, I am here not only representing Tai Lai Trading Company, but also communicating with senior executives in China. I know what you want.”
"Oh? Tell me about it." Li Boyang immediately became interested.
The power of foreign firms during this period was actually quite formidable; powerful firms could, to a certain extent, represent the will of the nation abroad.
Seeing that Li Boyang was interested, Christian smiled and said, "Mr. Li, there is a Chinese saying that honest people don't speak in riddles. We can help you sort out the external environment."
The other party's words hit Li Boyang's mind. In fact, the militia was already quite strong. The reason they dared not come openly was not because they feared the Qing government, but because of the foreign powers.
If they were to truly engage in a direct confrontation, even if they could defeat the Qing Dynasty, Baozhilin would be unable to withstand the intervention of foreign powers to ensure the stability of the Chinese market.
He coldly asked, "Then what do you want?"
"An open Chinese market, and we enjoy most-favored-nation treatment."
Christian knew the other party was already interested and said, "Mr. Lee, this doesn't seem to be the place to discuss these things. Perhaps we can go somewhere else."
"Li, why are you sitting here all by yourself? Didn't I tell them to take you directly to the second floor? What kind of business do those guys have?"
Just as Li Boyang hesitated, two people came down the stairs on the second floor of the hall, and the one in the lead was Cha Dun.
Chadon clearly recognized Christian, who was chatting with Li Boyang, and interrupted their conversation, feigning annoyance.
"Mr. Li, it seems we can't communicate today. I'll come find you."
Christian, with his sharp eyes, saw Chadton approaching and immediately left, giving Li Boyang a wink before he left.
"Li, let me introduce you. This is Vice Admiral Benjamin Auley of the Far East Fleet. General Auley has long admired you and has come here specifically to meet you."
Although there were four people who came together, Chad only introduced one. Li Boyang looked at the other two with some amusement, and at the same time, he was startled and understood why Christian had suddenly come to find him.
"So it's Lieutenant General Aurelius. I've heard so much about you."
Lieutenant General O'Reilly replied in broken Chinese: "I've long admired your name, Mr. Lee."
After they introduced themselves, Chadun led Li Boyang to a quiet room on the second floor.
“Mr. Li, the main reason I called you here is that Lieutenant General Auley wants to meet you. He has long admired General Auley of Baozhilin.”
Li Boyang chuckled inwardly. Sure enough, he had already caught the eye of the British government, and Baozhilin had become a force that the great powers took seriously.
He politely replied, "Not at all, it's just a small business."
The three of them talked in private in the quiet room for a long time.
Auré's arrival represented a faction within Britain, and Jardine Matheson was clearly part of that faction.
This faction believes that the current Chinese market is too closed, and that only a more open market is in the interest of the British Empire. However, a more open market is clearly something the Qing government cannot achieve.
Li Boyang's performance naturally caught their attention, and they were willing to support him in overthrowing the Qing Dynasty, though this may not have been without the intention of splitting China.
However, this faction is clearly not the mainstream in Britain. The prevailing trend in Britain is that a stable Far East market is more in Britain's interest, so they can only support it covertly.
Since both parties were willing to give and take, Li Boyang naturally wouldn't refuse. This was a freebie, so why not take advantage of it? As for the future, it would still be the same old story: let the gun do the talking.
After their private conversation, the three returned to the hall. Chaddon laughed and said, "Mr. Lee, there are so many beautiful ladies here, why don't you invite one of them to dance?"
Li Boyang smiled and declined, saying, "General Aure should go instead; I won't."
Just as Aure was about to go on stage to show off, a foreigner in his forties wearing a top hat walked over with a Japanese man dressed in Japanese martial arts uniform and carrying a katana.
The Japanese man had regular features, was over 1.7 meters tall, and had a well-proportioned physique. Even just walking normally, he exuded a fierce and imposing aura, with a knife in his hand.
"Old Chaddon, all these years have passed, how come you're still alive?"
“Jason Swire, Mr. Li, I’ve heard so much about you.” Swire politely extended his hand and shook hands with Li Boyang.
Swire Group, Li Boyang thought with a sneer. No wonder he looked for Chad from Chadton as soon as they met. Swire Group and Jardine Matheson were old rivals and belonged to different factions in Britain.
He wasn't going to get involved; he'd let the two of them fight it out themselves. He didn't say a word and just stood by.
As for the Japanese man in samurai attire, Japan is currently seeking to leave Asia and join Europe, and is clinging to the coattails of the British, so it's not surprising that he's here.
"Man has no intention to harm tiger, but tiger has the intention to harm man." The other party clearly assumed he was one of Chadun's men. The Japanese samurai with the katana spoke up:
"This must be the famous Mr. Li. I've only encountered a bunch of useless people who are all talk and no action when I came to China for the martial arts competition. I heard that Mr. Li is a disciple of Wong Fei-hung, but I don't know if that's true."
Chalton frowned and snapped, "Jason, is this the man you brought? He has no manners at all. Please get out."
Jason remained unmoved and explained, "This is Yagyu Jubei. He admires Chinese martial arts and came all the way across the sea. Now that he can't find a worthy opponent, he was just making a slip of the tongue in his frustration. Old Chaddon, you wouldn't be so petty, would you?"
“If that’s the case, then let’s go. I’ll take you to find Wong Fei-hung. He’s a famous martial arts master in Guangdong, and he must be quite skilled.”